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Soldiers’ Angels Founder Named “America’s Favorite Mom”

Hooray! Patti Patton-Bader was named “America’s Favorite Mom” last night! Congratulations, Patti!!

Press release:

PASADENA, CA May 11, 2008 –Soldiers’ Angels founder Patti Patton-Bader was named “America’s Favorite Mom” in a primetime television show Sunday night on NBC. Sponsored by Teleflora and hosted by Donny and Marie Osmond, the show highlighted fifteen outstanding mothers who had distinguished themselves in categories ranging from Working Moms to Military Moms and “Non-Mom” Moms.

Humbled by the honor, Patton-Bader is thrilled to be able to use it to continue the Soldiers’ Angels mission of “May No Soldier Go Unloved.” As the grand prize winner, she will receive $250,000, a set of household appliances, and other valuable items. Patton-Bader hopes to apply the winnings to her plans for a small ranch that will allow newly returned soldiers to relax with their families after deployments.

“I really am lucky to know so many heroes in my life,” said Patton-Bader, who herself has two sons in the Army, one currently deployed to Iraq. “Whether they are the troops who serve our country or the amazing mothers here on this America’s Favorite Mom program, I am honored to be in the presence of such inspirational people and also am humbled to know that America thinks the same of me.”

Patton-Bader is also excited about the opportunities this platform gives her to help people learn more about America’s military heroes and options for supporting them and their families. The attention she has received through the America’s Favorite Mom events has already drawn a number of new volunteers who want to use their talents and connections to help support the troops.

In a nationwide online poll last March, Patton-Bader was voted “America’s Most Inspirational Mom” after having been nominated by her eldest son for founding and leading Soldiers’ Angels. On May 5 she appeared on the Today show as one of three selected finalists in the “Favorite Military Mom” category. A nationwide online poll was again conducted, and the results were announced on May 11, with Patton-Bader being named winner in both the “Favorite Military Mom” and “America’s Favorite Mom” categories. More information is available at http://www.americasfavoritemom.com.

Soldiers’ Angels is a grassroots 501(c)(3) non-profit comprised of around 200,000 volunteers in over twenty different teams and programs with unique and effective ways to support members of the U.S. military. Soldiers’ Angels operates internationally to provide letters, care packages, and comfort items to the deployed, and support for their families at home. They also provide assistance to the wounded, continuing support for veterans, remembrances and comfort for families of the fallen, and immediate response to unique difficulties. For more information, see http://www.soldiersangels.org or call (615) 676-0239.

America’s Favorite Mom was presented by NBC Television and Teleflora, America’s leading source of hand-arranged floral bouquets, plants, and gift baskets. For more information, see http://www.americasfavoritemom.com.

A big ‘Thank you!’ goes out to everyone who voted!

Don’t forget to vote!

Just a quick reminder that today is the day we need to vote for Patti! The polls are open from 9am to 9pm EST. You can vote 10 times for each email address, so vote often!!

To vote, go here: www.nbc.com/Americas_Favorite_Mom/vote

Patti is listed in the “Military Mom” category.

Go Patti, GO!

Courtesy of the Soldiers’ Angels newsletter:

LOS ANGELES, April 30 /PRNewswire/ — Teleflora, the world’s leading floral wire service, and NBC today revealed the 15 semi-finalists in the nationwide search for America’s Favorite Mom. The inspirational stories of the three top moms in each of the five categories — military moms, working moms, single moms, “Non-mom” moms and “Chairman of Everything” moms — will be featured on NBC’s “Today” show May 5 through May 9 during the 9 o’clock hour. Each day, America will vote on who will continue into the final round. The winning mom will be crowned during the primetime television special, “Teleflora presents America’s Favorite Mom,” airing on Mother’s Day Sunday, May 11 at 7 p.m. EDT.

Teleflora’s 15 “America’s Favorite Mom” semi-finalists include:

Patti Patton-Bader (Pasadena, CA): Patton-Bader is a mother who founded Soldiers Angels Network, an organization that sends care packages to over 200,000 troops overseas

…

Viewers can tune-in to the “Today” show, the week of May 5 to learn more about these semi-finalists and vote for their favorite mom each day on http://www.nbc.com/. A different category will be highlighted every day: military moms, Monday, May 5 9 AM. You may only vote for one mother from one catagory on the day they are featured.

…

The 15 semi-finalists were selected from more than 15,000 online nominations collected at AmericasFavoriteMom.com. A panel of experts that included Stacy Morrison, editor-in-chief of Redbook Magazine, Sally Lee, editor-in-chief of Parents Magazine, and Sabrina Weill, Editor-in-Chief of Momlogic.com, helped to narrow the pool. Semi-finalists were notified when a local Teleflora florist personally delivered the specially-designed America’s Favorite Mom bouquet, the true centerpiece of Teleflora’s America’s Favorite Mom search, to each of their homes.

“We were just in awe of the thousands of amazing moms nominated on AmericasFavoriteMom.com — there were so many inspirational and heartfelt submissions,” said Lynda Resnick, chairman, Teleflora. “Now it’s time for America to decide who among these incredible mothers should be crowned ‘America’s Favorite Mom’.”

“At REDBOOK we know there is no one way to be a mom, since being a mom is just an expression of who you are as a woman,” said Stacy Morrison, editor-in-chief, Redbook Magazine. “The amazing array of nominees for America’s Favorite Mom demonstrates this in the most inspiring way. From fitness mom to working mom to military mom, these women remind us that the best way to have a life you love is to be exactly who you are.”

“This is one inspiring group of moms,” said Sally Lee, editor-in-chief, Parents Magazine. “They have such different life experiences, but they are all truly selfless in their commitment to raising happy, healthy children. They have made sacrifices and weathered challenges, but each one of these moms has an amazing attitude. They all deserve the title of ‘America’s Favorite Mom’!”

Momlogic.com editor-in-chief Sabrina Weill says, “What strikes me most about these amazing moms is not just one particular shining moment, but the everyday acts of motherhood, big and small, that impact their families and the children around them in such a powerful way. It’s a bit of ‘momlogic’ actually: You don’t have to be ‘SuperMom’ to be a truly heroic mother.”

Viewers can tune-in to the “Today” show, the week of May 5 to learn more about these semi-finalists and vote for their favorite mom each day on http://www.nbc.com/. A different category will be highlighted every day: military moms, Monday, May 5; working moms, Tuesday, May 6; single moms, Wednesday, May 7; “non-mom” moms, Thursday, May 8; and “chairman of everything” moms, Friday, May 9. Donny and Marie Osmond will appear on the May 5 show to kick-off the competition.

The five mothers with the greatest percentage of votes will take part in “Teleflora presents America’s Favorite Mom,” an NBC prime-time television event hosted by Donny and Marie Osmond. The one-hour show will feature an exclusive duet by the celebrity siblings and a special performance by Sony/Epic artists The D.E.Y. performing their new single “She Said,” a heartfelt ode to mothers. Editor-in-Chief of Redbook Magazine Stacy Morrison, who was a print sponsor of the nationwide search, will also make a guest appearance in the show.

The program will include a special tribute to 100 year old Opal Trundle, who was born on the first Mother’s Day, May 11, 1908. Opal raised six children during the great depression and has 96 grandchildren. In addition, there will be special cameo appearances by Christina Aguilera, Tony Hawk, Alicia Keys, Hulk Hogan, Naomi Judd, Amy Poehler and more throughout the broadcast. At the end of the special, the Osmonds will crown one lucky winner, “America’s Favorite Mom.”

Teleflora will present the grand prize winner with $250,000, an America’s Favorite Mom diamond encrusted pendant and a year’s worth of Teleflora flower arrangements. The winning mom will also receive a REDBOOK “Love Your Life” all-expense paid trip to New York City, including a beauty makeover and spa treatment, courtesy of Redbook Magazine, a family vacation package to St. Lucia, courtesy of Coconut Bay and all-new General Electric kitchen and laundry appliances. Teleflora will present the four runners-up with $25,000, a gold pendant, a year’s worth of Teleflora flower arrangements and a General Electric washer and dryer.

“Moms all over can relate to the hard work and sacrifices that go into raising a family, and we want to tell their stories through this television tribute to moms,” said Doug Vaughan, senior vice president, special programs and alternative development, NBC Entertainment. “Through uplifting stories and great performances, this special is bound to tug at your heart strings.”

What can $25,000 buy?

I’ve asked on here a few times, I’ve emailed friends, I’ve posted on forums and boards, heck I’ve even asked on my personal blog. I’ll ask again: Have you voted for Patti today? Are you remembering to vote every day?

A friend of mine quipped, “What would y’all do with all that money if she wins?”

Oh, I think Soldiers’ Angels could do a lot! Shelle Michaels covered this topic very well in this post on the SA blog — SA could do a LOT of good with the prize money if when Patti wins:

“…$25,000 can buy 425 Valour-IT lap tops for our wounded heroes. It can buy 5000 wounded hero backpacks to send to those most in need. It can buy 50 airline tickets for families and soldiers in need to get back and forth in emergency situations. To an organization like Soldiers’ Angels that solely relies upon donations and sponsors to step forward with generous commitments to our programs, a gift like $25,000 will go a long way…”

So, what are you waiting for? Go vote!

Have you been voting?

The America’s Favorite Mom contest has been extended and Patti needs our help and our VOTES now more than ever!

Voting ends April 25th, and you can vote once per day so bookmark this link and go vote!

Remember to vote for Patti!

There’s a little over a week left in the America’s Favorite Mom contest and as of this writing, Patti is in the lead! Voting ends March 31st, and you can vote once per day so bookmark this link and go vote!